Kia is king on ice

When we in North America think
of ice racing images of winter beaters sliding around a frozen lake are usually what come to mind. The Michigan Ice
Racing Association’s website has a pic
on its front page of a Ford Taurus “SNO” drifting side by side with a first gen Honda CRX that exemplifies
our understanding of the sport.

Elsewhere in the world ice racing is taken as seriously as WRC, and just
last week Kia won its second straight constructor’s championship and third straight individual championship when
Yvan Muller won the Andros Trophy, the international sport’s coveted crowning achievement, in a Kia Rio at
Super-Besse high in the French Alps.

Despite carrying more weight ballast than the last two championship
cars, Muller fended off advances from competitors including former F1 Grand Prix World Champion Alain Prost in a
Toyota. One look at the heavily modified and sponsor-stickered Rio that slid its way to victory proves these guys
aren’t racing winter beaters around a frozen pond.